[ale] Question: What does "Fixating" mean for burning cd?

[James Sumners]

>From http://www.osta.org/technology/cdqa2.htm :
"Fixation is the process of completing a CD-R or CD-RW disc session by
writing Lead-In (table of contents) and Lead-Out information. Once a
disc is fixated it can then be played back in CD and DVD-ROM drives
and recorders and consumer electronics devices compatible with the
particular disc type and format. It is also possible to record
additional information later to create a multisession disc.
Finalization, on the other hand, completely closes the disc so no
further material can be added."

In other words, fixation closes the disc so that no more data can be
written to it. Fixation adds the "Lead-Out" information to the disc.



On 10/27/06, David A. De Graaf <dad at datix.us> wrote:
> On Fri, Oct 27, 2006 at 12:24:22PM -0400, James Sumners wrote:
> > 1) My answer is not a "non-answer".
>
> I am left still wondering what, exactly, is being written during this
> process...
>
> > 2) Your assumption is correct. If you had not told your drive to use
> > "burnfree" you would have hit a buffer underrun almost immediately.
> > The burnfree method was devised to prevent buffer underruns by
> > allowing the burn to sort of stutter through no matter how fast the
> > data stream is to the drive. The final quality of a disc that relied
> > on burnfree heavily during the burn process as opposed to the quality
> > of one that did not is vast. I'm willing to bet that if you reburn
> > that disc without relying on burnfree, your new disc will read a lot
> > faster than your current one.
>
> You're right; I'm wrong.  I thought I had verified this disk - written
> in many spurts, with data coming over a wireless link.  Evidently I
> hadn't.
>
> An attempt just now to measure the read time with sha1sum failed
> miserably.  Not only did it fail with an I/O error, but there were
> strange sounds emitted by the drive - periodic raspy moo's.
> Definitely a bad disk!
> I withdraw my original "information".   :-(
>
> Carpenters have a motto - Measure twice, cut once.
> I should have applied that principle here.  Sorry.

-- 
James Sumners
http://james.roomfullofmirrors.com/

"All governments suffer a recurring problem: Power attracts
pathological personalities. It is not that power corrupts but that it
is magnetic to the corruptible. Such people have a tendency to become
drunk on violence, a condition to which they are quickly addicted."

Missionaria Protectiva, Text QIV (decto)
CH:D 59